Joseph Conrad's writing style in Heart of Darkness utilizes very strong adjectives and verbs in order to convey actions and show settings. The novella is very short, but the sentences are long, flowing descriptions. Conrad avoids describing things directly, and his descriptions make you question what they are really saying. One such example is when Marlow speaks of being a strong man, not easily disturbed by evil. He compares men as being "devils of greed, and lust" and when talking about driving other men in chains, the description isn't extremely clear. In addition to that, another example is when Marlow breaks from the frame story to talk about the future. He tells the other passengers of The Nellie that he "heard of the offerings made in Kurtz' name." At first, the reader questions this, but Conrad meant what he said--Kurtz was a god to them. In addition to that, the style of the narration also plays a role. Most of the story is told through Marlow's great eloquence and story-telling ability. Due to this, a lot of the text focuses on Marlow's personal thoughts and digresses into his deep philosophies about mankind. These philosophies help to establish Marlow as a realistic, intelligent character.
Style
Joseph Conrad's writing style in Heart of Darkness utilizes very strong adjectives and verbs in order to convey actions and show settings. The novella is very short, but the sentences are long, flowing descriptions. Conrad avoids describing things directly, and his descriptions make you question what they are really saying. One such example is when Marlow speaks of being a strong man, not easily disturbed by evil. He compares men as being "devils of greed, and lust" and when talking about driving other men in chains, the description isn't extremely clear. In addition to that, another example is when Marlow breaks from the frame story to talk about the future. He tells the other passengers of The Nellie that he "heard of the offerings made in Kurtz' name." At first, the reader questions this, but Conrad meant what he said--Kurtz was a god to them. In addition to that, the style of the narration also plays a role. Most of the story is told through Marlow's great eloquence and story-telling ability. Due to this, a lot of the text focuses on Marlow's personal thoughts and digresses into his deep philosophies about mankind. These philosophies help to establish Marlow as a realistic, intelligent character.